Car retarder for railroads



July 30, 1935. N, c, BROWN I CAR RETARDER FOR RAILROADS Filed Dec. '7, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet l July 30, 193 N. c. L. BROWN CAR RETARDER FOR RAILROADS Filed Dec. '7, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 8 R V I/711% O T T A Patented July 30, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GAR RETARDER FOR vRAILROADS Ned C. L. Brown, Scottsville, N. Y., assignor to General Railway Signal Company, Rochester,

Application December 7,1933, Serial No.-701,355 10 Claims. (01. 188-62) which this. invention relates, it is desirable to obtain as high a degree of retardation as is possible per running foot of retarder.

With the aboveand other objects in view, it-is proposed, in accordance with this invention, to provide a retarder in which the various parts which move in contact with each other, shall be protected against wear and breakage as far as possible; and to provide means for increasing the degree of retardation per running foot of retarder, as much as possible; and to provide means for quickly and economically taking up lost motion due to wear of various rubbing parts.

Further objects, purposes and characteristic features of the present invention will appear as a description progresses, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, showing, embodiments of the invention in a, purely diagrammatic manner and in no manner whatsoever in a limiting sense. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a retarder in accordance with this invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation on line 22 of Figj'l, viewed in the direction of the. arrows.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional elevation of a modified form of the invention.

Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation, on line. 44 of Fig. 1, viewed in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a rocker arm constituting a portion of this invention.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view on line 6-6 of Fig. 2, viewed in the direction of the arrows. I

Fig. 6A is a sectional view on lines BA-BA of Fig. 6, viewed in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 6B is a sectional view similar to Fig. 6A showing a modified form of the invention.

Fig. '7 is a plan view of one member-of two cooperating spacers.

Fig. 7A is a plan view of the other member of.

the cooperating spacers.

Fig. 7B is a section on line lB-IB of Fig. 7A, viewed in the direction of the arrows.

Referring now to the drawings, and first to Figs. 1 and 2, there is here represented a section of railway track constituted by rails land 2 carried on ties 3. At each side of each track rail,

is a retarder shoe 4, formed of any usual or suitable material, such as iron or steel or the like, and each is carried by a brake beam 5 which, as shown most clearly in Fig. l, is made up of articulated sections in substantially the same manner as disclosed in the Howe patent above referred to.

In each brake beam 5, are sockets, each for receiving the head 6, of a rocker arm 1, which, as'shown in Fig. 5, has two legs extending from the head 6, and terminating in feet 8, and an intermediate bearingmember 9, which is in the,

form of a knife-edge or rocker bearing. Each rocker arm 1 is made of manganese steel or other extremelyhard alloy, whereby to withstand Wear, although subjected to very heavy duty. 7

Positioned between the feet 8 of each pair of rocker arms associated with each track rail, is a spring l0, normally under compression, and

hence tending to move the opposing lower ends of the rocker arms away from eachother, and the associated brake shoes towards each other.

An operating bar I I, can be moved transversely of the track rails by means of cam levers l2, piv-' oted at l3 at fixed points, and connected at their outer ends by pins M to a power bar l5, whereby movement of the bar 15 in a direction parallel to the track rails, moves the cam arm I6 in a direc-' tion transverse of the rails, to thereby slide the operating bars I I in a direction transverse tothe track rails, all substantially as disclosed in the above referred to Howe patent.

The arrangement of parts about each track rail is identical, and accordingly, in the following discussion, a description of the parts associated.

with one track rail should sufiice to disclose the apparatus for each track rail.

Considering the apparatus associated with track rail. I, the rocker arm to the left has its knife-edge bearing 9 held in fixed position by. clamping means ll, of any .usual character, such as in the Howe patent, for example. The knifeedge bearing 9 rests against a hardenedface l8. which can be made of manganese steel orother. extremely hard alloyand welded onto a'receiv-i--- ing fixed portion 19, whereby to have the frice" tional contacting portions 9 and 18, of extremely;

hard wear resisting materials.

The other rocker arm 1 associated with the track rail I, has its knife-edge bearing 9 carried by the operating bar H, by means of receiving portions 20 and 2|, held in place on the bar Ii by suitable bolts, as shown. Here again, the hardened knife-edge bearing 9 of manganese steel or the like, bears against a hardened face member 22, welded or otherwise fastened to the receiving member .20, whereby to largely eliminate frictional wear between these two parts.

In the manner as disclosed in the Howe patent, by moving the bar I l to various positions, andretaining it therein, the knife-edge bearings 9 can be brought closer together or be moved further apart, whereby to increase or decrease the compression of spring ID, to thereby increase or decrease the resistance against a car wheel on the rail forcing the opposing brake shoes apart, to thereby vary the degree of retardation exerted.

The sockets in the top faces of the brake beams are formed in a manner to readily receive removable-wear resisting shims or liners 23, which take the form of flat plates with extending cars 2 Cooperatingwith each head member 6 of each rccker, are two of these liners 23, one on each side of the head, as shown in Fig. 2 for example. These liners can'be made of manganese steel or other wear resisting very hard, and ductile, alloy, and are put in place by passing the liner downwardly into the head receiving socket, with each car 24 passing through a corresponding receiving slt=2-5 at the ends of the socket. When the cars 24 strike a stop ledge 26, the said liner can be slid horizontally along the slot 21 to its lining position, wherein theears are against either of the'back stops 28 or 29 depending upon whether the liner is for the outer or the inner face of the rocker head ii. These liners, when worn, can easily be replaced by new'ones. Furthermore, two or more shims or liners, of the same shape as the liners 23, can be placed between the heads 6,

and the inner face of the head receiving opening,

placed at one end of the opening, as in Fig. 613, to

permit changing of shims while the rocker head is still in place. I

In Fig. 3 is shown a slightly modified form of the invention, as regards the provision against wear of the rocker head and the brake beam socket. In this form, the rocker head 6, as before, is made up of very hard material, such as manganese steel or the like, but instead of using removable liners 23, as described above, a hardened wear face '33, of suitable material, such as manganese steel'or the like, is welded, or otherwise fixed, onto the face of the receiving socket which is next to the track rail, as this is the face of the socket which receives the major part of the forces involved.

' In this Fig. 3, there is shown in greater detail, the hardened faces 22 (and 18) against which the knife-edge bearings 9 operate.

Carried by the operating bar H, is a fixed stop member 3i, which is fastened by bolts 32, to the bar, and this stop member 3| cooperates with a ation. It is also desirable, not only to center the retarder with respect to the rail, when the retarder is not in use, but also to take up all lost motion and play at the various joints involved, in order to minimize shocks and jars and undue wear. This duel function is performed, with regard to the parts associated with each track rail, by means of two springs; a leaf spring 34, and a coil spring 35, although the springs could both be of the same kind or of some other different kind, if desired.

As best shown in Figs. 1 and 4 the leaf spring 34 is anchored to a fixed member at its center by a U-bolt 36 or the like, and has its two free ends bearing against the outer portion of the brake beam, whereby to bias the left hand brake beam associated with track rail i, away from the track rail, to thereby press the inner face of rocker head against the inner removable liner 23. This rocks the rocker I so as to press its knifeedge bearing 9 against the hardened face l8, and move the lower end of this rocker toward the track rail, whereby to press the members 3'! and 38, which hold the spring l0, against the feet 8 of the two rocker arms involved. The rocker arm 1, which is at the right of the rail l, is thus moved to force its bearing 9 against the hardened face 22, and move its head 6 inwardly toward the rail, until stop portion 33 on the rocker arm contacts with stop member 3|, and thereby, in combination with contact between bearing 9 and face 22, tend to move bar H to take up any play at bearings i3, I3 and i4, thus tending to move bar I5 to a point where it is held stationary by suitable means provided in the mechanisms. Thus, when pressure is suddenly applied, there is not shock and pounding on the various bearings, thus to lengthen the life of the machine, very materially. Since the spring 34 is made to exert a greater force than does the coil spring 35, the brake beam to the right of rail I is forced toward the track rail until the two stops 3i and 33 are in contact. In order to take up any play between the inner liner of the right hand brake beam, and the inner face of the head of its rocker arm, after the stops 3| and 33 have been brought into contact, the coil spring 35 is employed, and operates against the outer face of the brake beam to bias the beam outwardly so as to take'up'any lost motion at this point.

In order to obtain the maximum permissible braking effort, when the shoes are applied to a ca Wheel passing through them, it is necessary to have the shoe applied at a point on the wheel, as high as possible above the lower tread, as clearance. will permit. Means -is' accordingly provided for raising the brake shoes as they are brought forward toward the track rails, and in this particular embodiment the means for raising each shoe is a support member 39, carried on a spring 43, which is anchored at 4| to a fixed part, whereby the brake beam and its shoe, as shown in Fig. 4, when advanced toward the track rail, is raised up on the cam portion 62 of the support 39. The support 39 has a stop end 43, which contacts with the underside of the rail head, whereby to limit the upper position of this stop. In the event that clearance, in some instances, be not as great as is necessary, the shoes may be hit, but, together with the spring 40, they can be pushed downwardly, in order to allow passage of the obstacle without causing any breakage of parts, and as soon as the clearance permits, theshoe will be raised and hence increase the degree of retardation to the maximumpermissible degree.

'In order to take up lost motion which may be caused by wear in the various joints, a simple and readily applied two-part spacer is employed, as

shown in detail "inFigsiT, 7A and 73, with one of the spacers shown in operative position, and to an enlarged scale, in Fig. 3.

This spacer. comprises two complementary U-shaped members designated in general as D and E, which, when fitted together, form a spacer of uniform thickness held. on a shaft, against movement out'of position in any direcion, so long as theyare pressed together.- These spacers are employed as shown in Fig. 3,- for example, to take up wear and lost motion by being placed between one end of the spring lil; andgthe spring supporting member 38, and as, many of the spacers can be used as is found necessary. r

Considering the spacer element E, it is in-the form of a U, with an extending boss '44 at each end of each leg of the-U, and with a center extending boss 45 on thebase of the U.v At each side of this boss 45, arereceiving, shoulders 46, for receiving the end bosses 44 of the complementary element Dof the spacer. Considering the elements D and E, as shown in Figs. 7 and 7A respectively, if the element D be rotated to the right as viewed in the drawings, through an angle of 180, the center boss 45 thereof fits between the ends of the legs of the member E, and the shoulders 46 thereof receive the beveled portions 47 of the terminal lugs 44 of the member E. With regard to the upper portions of the members D and E, the corresponding bosses thereon will interfit in the same manner as just described, to thereby constitute a spacer formed of two members which has a thickness equal to that of the boss 45, for example, and appearing in side elevation, when placed in operating position, as shown to best advantage in Fig. 3.

In practice the two elements constituting a spacer are placed on a shaft such as 41, for example, with one element having its legs projecting upwardly, and the other element having its legs projecting downwardly, and then the two elements are brought together and held in such position by means of the spring l8, so as to regis-' ter the corresponding bosses and portions.

With spacers of this character, they can be readily applied and removed either by compressing the spring I ll to furnish a space between the end of the spring and the spring receiving member 38, or by loosening the nuts on the end of the spring supporting rod to provide space, without any necessity for dismounting the spring and the spring holding means, as would be necessary were a usual circular washer or spacer to be employed. A consideration of this spacer, when inoperating position, shows that the two parts constitute a single spacer, and that so long as the two parts are held together, the parts of the spacer cannot be moved in any direction relative to each other, so that the spacer constituted of two parts greatly facilitates placement of the same in position and removal of the same, and still functions in all respects under operating conditions as would a single piece spacer or washer.

The invention as described above, thus furnishes a much improved car retarder of the track brake type, which has manifest advantages over prior systems of this general character.

As set forth above, one advantage of this invention resides in furnishing the rockers i, with a knife-edge or rocker bearing 9, instead or" a parts rolling over each other, instead of sliding, the entire rocker being made of a wear resisting,

very hard, material, such as manganese steel or the like. r

Afurther advantage of this invention is that of furnishing all the various mova ble contacting parts on which wear is apt-to occur, with hardened wear resisting faces, either by means of removable liners, or by means of hardened face members, Welded, or otherwise fixed, in place. I

A further advantage obtained bythis invention is constituted bythe improved two-part spacer, which can be readily placed in position, and as readily removed, and can be employed to take up any lost-motion which may occur due to wear, or the like, of the various parts involved.

A further advantage of thisinvention'is that of raising the'brake shoe as it is advanced toward the track rail by means of a resilient support, whereby, should clearance on certain vehicles be insufiicient to permit passage of the shoe at its elevated'point, the shoe can be pushed'down to permit passage of the'vehi'cle, without breakage of parts, and the shoe is then returned to its higher point, as soon as it is possible;

The above rather specific description of two forms which this invention can assume, has been given solely by way of example, and is not intended, in any manner whatsover, in a limiting sense. It is also to be understood that various modifications, adaptations and alterations may be applied to meet the requirements of practice without in any manner departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention, except as defined by the appended claims.

Having described the invention, I now claim:

1. In car retarders, in combination, a brake beam adjacent a track rail, a rocker arm, an integral knife edge bearing rod in the arm, and a head on the arm received in the beam for moving the beam relatively to the rail while pivoting on the rod.

2. In car retarders, in combination, a brake beam adjacent a track rail, a rocker arm, includedge bearing for the arm, a head on the arm received in a socket in the beam for moving the beam relatively to the rail, and removable wear liners, having ears receivable in slots in the socket walls, positioned in the socket and contacting with, the head of the rocker.

4. In car retarders, in combination, a brake beam adjacent a track rail, a rocker arm, having an integral knife edge bearing rod for pivoting the arm, a head onthe arm received in a socket in the beam for moving the beam relatively to the rail, and wear liners attached by lugs to the socket face to contact with the head of the rocker.

5. In a car retarder, in combination, .a brake beam at one side of a track rail, means for moving the beam toward the rail, and an electrically supported cam, on which the beam rides when moved toward the rail, for raising the beam as it approaches the rail.

6. In a car retarder, in combination, a brake beam at one side of a track rail,means for moving the beam toward the rail, a leaf spring supported cam, on which the beam rides when moved toward the rail, for raising the beam as it approaches the rail, whereby, if clearance 1 be insuflicient, the

beam can be moved downwardly against the resistance of the spring.

7.'For.use in a car retarder, in which a rocker arm is, operativeiy connected to a beam to move it relatively to a rail, a rod for moving the arm, a spring on the rod, and a two-part spacer on the rod and between the spring and the arm, the two parts of the spacer being complementary and each of a U-shape, with legs inverted each to the other, when in position, a central projecting lug on the bar of each U with a receiving face at each side of the leg; and a projecting lug at each end of eachleg of each U, each received by a corresponding said face when the parts arein operative position. I 1

8. In car retarders, in combination, a brake beam adjacent a, track rail, a rocker arm, a knife edge bearing for the arm, ahead on the arm received in a socket in the beam for moving the beam relatively to the rail, and a plurality of removablewear liners, having ears receivable in slots inthe socket walls, positioned in the socket and at one side of, and contacting with, the head of the rocker whereby to initially move the beam toward the rail and compensate for wear on all parts of the retarder.

9. For use in a car retarder, in which a rocker arm is operatively connected to a beam to move it relatively to a rail; a rod for moving the arm, a spring on the rod, and a two-part spacer, having the parts overlap and interlock on the rod and between the spring and the arm.

10. For use in a car retarder, in which a rocker arm is operatively connected to a beam to move it relatively to a rail, 3, rod for moving the arm, a spring on -the rod, and a two-part spacer on the rod and between the spring and-the arm, the two parts of the spacer being overlapping and complementary and each of a U-shape, with legs inverted each to the other, when in position.

NED C. L. BROWN. 

